💫 Book Review 💫
Letters Across the Sea by Genevieve Graham

Dear Genevieve,

It’s been 10 months since my first book and our first conversation. It’s been even less since we did our zoom and yet somehow I can’t remember when I wasn’t reading your carefully crafted historical fiction novels that spotlight Canadian past.

Starting with Forgotten Home child (read it), going to Tides of Honour (read it) and then staying with the East coast novel with Come From Away (read it), I hesitated to which one pulled my heart the most and then you hand me this one.

‘Letters’ spotlights WWII with two families (one Christian, one Jewish) who grow up together and are pulled apart with anti semite attitudes that happened well before Canada was pulled into the war. The connections to my own soil and the anti-semitism that was buried in history books have opened my eyes to read more.

From the riot that happens after a baseball game to the shores of Hong Kong, a reader feels the heartache of war and the pain of hidden secrets that destroy a life and the many people involved. This book, is Genevieve’s finest.

Ps. The maps and “extras” at the end are such a grateful bonus.

Thank you Genevieve & Simon & Schuster for this gifted copy in return for an honest review.

She has done it again. With another beautifully written book. A book that combines a wonderful mix of history with her own characters. Characters that pull you in with them until the very end. I laughed I cried (a lot) and I absolutely loved getting to know these characters- even if I could only know them for a little while !

If I could give this book more than 5 stars, I absolutely would!!

My father passed just over a month ago. Needless to say, it’s been a difficult time and my ability to focus has been terrible. Then I was approved by NetGalley for this novel and suddenly, I was whisked away to a time and place that called to me in so many ways!

The Ryans and The Dreyfuses were two families who made their home in Toronto, Ontario Canada in the 1930’s. This was a turbulent time in history when the Jewish community was being targeted due to their beliefs. Tensions escalated for years leading up to WWII and many friends became enemies for no other reason other than their religion. This was the case between these two families.

Molly Ryan lived with her parents and four brothers, Ritchie, Jimmy, Mark, and Liam. Across the road, Molly’s best friend Hannah Dreyfus lived with her parents and brother Max. They were the best of friends and as they grew older, Molly and Max developed feelings for one another that were against what society deemed acceptable.

Sadly, like so many others, the sons of these families, along with their friends, were sent overseas to fight. Some were killed in action, some were held as POW’s and some were listed as missing. Molly searched daily for information but could never find any information about what happened to Max. After a significant amount of time had passed, at Hannah’s insistence, Molly tried to move on with her life. She focussed on her writing career at The Star and began dating a co-worker who she eventually became engaged to. Everything appeared to be falling into place, until the end of the war finally came. Molly was forced to re-evaluate her decisions and where she saw herself in the future.

My grandparents lived in Toronto during the time frame of this novel. I would read passages of Letters Across the Sea and then compare them to old photos I was currently sorting at my parents’ house. I was able to get a feel for what they would have been wearing and what the city actually looked like at that time. I felt connected to the characters in a way I’ve never felt before.

Imagine my surprise when Ian and Molly even travelled to Bowmanville to cover the Battle of Bowmanville story! I live 5 MINUTES from Camp 30! Another scene I was able to visualize so easily as we have visited this site more times than I can count.

All of this just intensified my love for this story! Genevieve Graham is hands-down my favorite author of Canadian historical fiction. Letters Across the Sea was well-researched and rich in detail. I was able to escape my life for a time and be reminded that life does indeed go on. Thank you, Ms. Graham.

“𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧.” - 𝑀𝑎𝑥, 𝐿𝑒𝑡𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑠 𝐴𝑐𝑟𝑜𝑠𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑆𝑒𝑎

***Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for the opportunity to read and review this ARC***

An absolute treasure of a book. Graham writes the historical Canadian stories that we all should read.

4.5 stars.
I want to express my sincere thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for this interesting and informative ARC in return for an honest review. I was delighted that my request was granted. I can honestly state that I have learned more Canadian history from Genevieve Graham's wonderfully written and impeccably researched historical novels than I ever learned in school. Our own Canadian history was ignored for textbooks favouring Ancient Greek and Roman or British history. I got the idea that the Canadian past was too dull and boring to be included in our curriculum. Genevieve Graham's historical novels have taught me how wrong that impression was.

Her books are my favourite historical novels, usually including well-known facts and fascinating glimpses into our mostly forgotten past. Her stories also include an emotional and romantic element without any graphic sexual content. The author makes her characters very relatable, believable and memorable, and I always find their predicaments most engaging and compelling.

Little known parts of our history include the Christie Pits Riot in Toronto in 1933, noted as the largest ethnic riot in Canadian history is vividly brought to life. Anti-Semitic Nazi sympathizers attacked a crowd who had been watching a ballgame. Molly, a hard-working Protestant who has reluctantly dropped out of school to help support her family during the Depression, becomes friends with Max, a young Jewish man. He is the brother of her best friend, Hannah, and a top athlete on the baseball team. Molly longs for the time she can return to school and become a journalist and write the truth about what is happening in those tumultuous times. Max intends to go to University and become a doctor. During the riots, there are injuries, including Molly's policeman father, who suffers a brain injury when hit on the head by a brick. The blame is placed on Max's father. The two families were opposed to any developing romance between Max and Molly, and now more so than ever.

The time passes, and Max has finished his medical training. He enlists in WW2 as a medic. Molly's four brothers also join the military. The plight of Canadian soldiers sent to defend Hong Kong from the Japanese is a story many are not aware of today. They were sent unprepared and poorly equipped, outnumbered, and fought in a bloody, losing battle. Almost 2,000 soldiers who survived the battle were sent to a brutal Japanese Prison camp where they had to endure appalling conditions, torture, disease, starvation and death at the whim of the sadistic guards. Those who survived suffered lifelong medical and mental conditions. Some who came home had many problems adjusting to civilian life and to their families. PTDS, blindness, and loss of limbs, painful wounds and scars from burns were not uncommon.

Molly is now a promising journalist and engaged to a lovely, kind man at the news office. She has not fully recovered from the heartache caused by not hearing from Max for years and believes him dead, as was one of her brothers' fate. Her other brothers have returned suffering from injuries and trauma in their service on the European and Asian fronts. She has interviewed returning soldiers at the end of the war and has written newsworthy accounts about prison camps and war experiences.

Genevieve Graham presents useful maps, additional facts and statistics from her intensive research. These extra facts helped form this riveting work of historical fiction and should not be missed after the story.

Genevieve Graham has such a beautiful knack of knitting her fictional stories with real facts and events in history. Letters Across the Sea is poignant, gut wrenching, heartwarming, heartbreaking and sobering. Though the characters may be fictional, the horrors real people went through during the depression and WWII are unimaginable and portrayed so well in this book. Graham does not gloss over raw and intense descriptions which are difficult to read but at the same time, it was reality and a good reminder not to take our freedoms for granted.

Molly, an 18-year-old Protestant in 1936 Toronto, is friends with Jewish Hannah and her brother, Max. However, her loyalties are tested when anti-Jew signs appear all over and riots break out as Jews are horribly ostracized and beaten. No idea how as a Canadian I had next to no insight into the Christie Pit Riots and Orangemen! This is one of the many reasons such books hold tremendous appeal...they are fascinating, informative and there is always something to learn, not just about history but also the incredible human spirit.

The story takes us through the lives of these three characters plus others including family members as tensions increase dramatically, tension which are almost palpable. We also see glimpses into 1939 and then later the effects of PTSD in the aftermath. This story was a WOW to me in its entirety. Yes, the brutality is awful but we also rejoice at the loyalty, love, courage and hope.

The Battle of Hong Kong details are challenging to read BUT am I ever glad to learn more! I did not realize it was the only battle in WWII which was 100% a failure. What a tragic waste.

Do pay attention to the helpful notes in the back, too, AFTER finishing the story. Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction and General Fiction fans truly should prioritize this deeply moving and thoughtfully-written book.

My sincere thank you to Simon & Schuster Canada and NetGalley. This is a wonderful, wonderful book.

As she always does, Genevieve Graham has written yet another wonderful book. This one begins during The Great Depression and continues through till the end of WWII. It touches on the horrendous way that Jews were treated during the depression era, even with the news of the atrocities taking place in Germany. I did not know how bad it was in Toronto for Jewish people. Things were so bad that there was a massive riot that saw numerous people seriously injured and tore apart friendships. I also learned a lot about the Canadian Soldiers that were taken as Prisoners of War by the Japanese army. I knew that these camps were evil but I learned so much about what happened to our soldiers. It was extremely difficult to read.

The characters in this book were wonderfully created and it was easy to picture them in my mind. The main character, Molly was a strong and modern woman, getting a job when many woman of that era only wanted to get married. Max was a serious and hard working young man, putting all his time and energy into becoming a doctor. The chemistry that the author created between these two characters was special and I was cheering for them the entire book.

Ms. Graham has written so many books that all deal with Canadian History and she does so in a creative way by making her characters so realistic. I have learned about many aspects of our history that aren’t talked about. You can always depend on this author to deliver an intriguing story that reads as an amazing fiction but is entirely based on facts. It takes a special writer to keep you wanting to read the book in one sitting.

I thank NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Canada for the opportunity to read this amazing book.

Genevieve Graham has done it again. Letters Across the Sea is superb Canadian historical fiction. I cannot say enough good things about this must read novel!.

It is interesting, focussing on two little known periods in Canadian history (Christie Pit Riots and anti-semitism in Toronto during the Great Depression and the Canadian troops role in the Battle of Hong Kong during WWII). It is well-written and engaging and pulls you into the story so effectively that I felt that I was living events along with the wonderfully depicted characters. I could not put the book down and read it in one day. Novels like this are why I love to read.

You can always count on a Genevieve Graham novel and this one is no exception. This novel, for me, has set the bar for historical fiction for this year. It is simply fantastic. This is one you have to read! Letters Across the Sea is out on April 27.

Thanks to Simon and Schuster and Netgalley for this advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Typically, i do not read a whole book in one day - but this one compelled me to do so. I am a fan of Genevieve Graham's novels. They are charming, simple, and authentic. The words flow easily and make the story unputdownable! I love the historical component and the characters are always so likeable and nice! I always learn something about Canadian history while reading her stories.

I was immediately drawn in, and felt i was a part of the story. The love story of Max and Molly was so wonderful and I was cheering them on the whole way through. The atrocities of WWII were difficult to read but were eye opening and honest.

Definitely a favourite of the year, and highly recommended to lovers of historical fiction and romance!